[rbrogan]

How does this compare to, say, a Q&A site where one gets positive feedback for answering random questions? Is the reason why people leave because they cannot do the work that they want (time used up in collaboration) or is it because they are not being given credit for the work they are doing?

[morebetterer]

Constantly being interrupted to answer simple questions is a thankless task that has negative consequences to your own productivity. You ultimately have to do their work and have less time for your own, which can be stressful when on projects with tight deadlines (aren't they all?). At some point I realized that being overly helpful makes you an enabler of this rude behavior - why bother spending a few minutes researching something when the guy across from you can answer it immediately? Often it's better to say no and encourage more self reliance.